The Sibley Enigma

[Bris Vegas]

1 hour ago, sage said:

We had several players who have played at championship level. That is unusual as a collective. 

They did but none really excelled. Of that 2018/19 youth side, none have made it to the Premier League. 

It’s weird but Forest and Leicester consistently produce better players, despite Derby having the best academy of the three. 

[CBRammette]

I almost think if he played at another club he would be under less pressure to perform and may develop more. Because he's a proper Ram I think many of us desperately would love him to find a consistent level of high performance. He seems to get more comments on here at least week on week than others. Perhaps he is also so desperate to make it here it affects his performance? He is an enigma, I like him and hope he stays with us. Perhaps PW or one of his coaching staff can finally sort whatever it is. 

Edited October 23, 2022 by CBRammette
Typos

[sage]

9 minutes ago, Bris Vegas said:

They did but none really excelled. Of that 2018/19 youth side, none have made it to the Premier League. 

It’s weird but Forest and Leicester consistently produce better players, despite Derby having the best academy of the three. 

We don't tend to develop players with pace. Not real pace. Add a yard of pace onto anyone from that side and suddenly it's different player.

[May Contain Nuts]

30 minutes ago, Bris Vegas said:

They did but none really excelled. Of that 2018/19 youth side, none have made it to the Premier League. 

It’s weird but Forest and Leicester consistently produce better players, despite Derby having the best academy of the three. 

It's been noted before that they produce more rounded players who bigger teams  can nick and then mould into the player they want.

Perhaps we're too specialised in our approach.

 

 

 

[Steve How Hard?]

Hopefully PW perseveres with playing him in his best position. He excelled against Accy Stanley there. Thought he started against Ipswich in the same vein but regressed quickly as the team performance did.

He will be a game changer for us at this level as his ability is streets ahead of the average league 1 player. He can also dominate games at a higher level too if he's given the chance to maintain match sharpness. 

[Premier ram]

to me Louis plays like he feels hes one mistake from being dropped , a confidence thing if  you like , he needs a consistent run in the team for him to show us what a talent he is

[europia]

A one game in three player. 

[Carl Sagan]

7 hours ago, sage said:

We don't tend to develop players with pace. Not real pace. Add a yard of pace onto anyone from that side and suddenly it's different player.

That's interesting. Someone like Timi Elsnik really seemed extraordinarily gifted with the ball but was maybe even slower that the rest. I felt we should have kept him and he'd have been out Matt Le Tissier, scoring from 35 yards week after week, but for some reason we let go and I was surprised no one else picked him up. He's now playing for Slovenia, for instance in their recent draw away at Sweden, so can't be terrible. But wasn't quick.

[Ambitious]

When Derby won the u18 Premier League, he was the best player in the division by an absolute mile. He came into the first team and his ability was all to see. 

Mismanaged, poorly coached and dragged down with the situation the club has been in. I think we’ve done him an absolute massive disservice and significantly hindered his career. If we had taken the £5m on the table Wolves offered when he was the best player at his level then he would likely be a much better player now.

I really want him to kick on here, but ultimately I just want what’s best for him now. He needs coaching up. He’s still got tremendous amounts of ability and can win a game on his own. 

[Ambitious]

8 hours ago, Bris Vegas said:

They did but none really excelled. Of that 2018/19 youth side, none have made it to the Premier League. 

It’s weird but Forest and Leicester consistently produce better players, despite Derby having the best academy of the three. 

On the flip side, we have been historically poor in continuing the development of players. 

Bird, Knight, Sibley are all worse now than when they came into the team after being coached by our academy staff. 

[Magicman]

21 minutes ago, Ambitious said:

On the flip side, we have been historically poor in continuing the development of players. 

Bird, Knight, Sibley are all worse now than when they came into the team after being coached by our academy staff. 

True and Bucko is hardly an inspiration now.

[sage]

6 hours ago, Ambitious said:

On the flip side, we have been historically poor in continuing the development of players. 

Bird, Knight, Sibley are all worse now than when they came into the team after being coached by our academy staff. 

I think there is an element of other teams getting to know players ganes and nullifying them. 

This is especially true with Sibley. Don't let him turn, rough him up a bit. Play on his first touch. 

[VulcanRam]

15 hours ago, Steve How Hard? said:

Hopefully PW perseveres with playing him in his best position. He excelled against Accy Stanley there. Thought he started against Ipswich in the same vein but regressed quickly as the team performance did.

He will be a game changer for us at this level as his ability is streets ahead of the average league 1 player. He can also dominate games at a higher level too if he's given the chance to maintain match sharpness. 

I'm not sure what you've based that opinion on? He has flashes of excellence here and there, but consistency has always been a problem.

And while you can always argue he doesn't get a run in the team, equally ask yourself why he doesn't get a run in the team if he's as good as you say. He's shown no signs of dominating games at either the Championship or L1.

If he's a game changer, why isn't he changing games? I like Sibley but it's always "he will do this if......"

Maybe he will turn out to be amazing, but until he does start doing any of the above you mention, it's just potential that will go unfulfilled. At the moment he's a good squad player but has no more reason to demand a place than anyone else.  

[CrapSince99]

Sibley moves like a Pro Evo player, quite a rigid mover. With any luck he'll turn out like Adriano on PES6.

[Steve How Hard?]

12 minutes ago, VulcanRam said:

I'm not sure what you've based that opinion on? He has flashes of excellence here and there, but consistency has always been a problem.

And while you can always argue he doesn't get a run in the team, equally ask yourself why he doesn't get a run in the team if he's as good as you say. He's shown no signs of dominating games at either the Championship or L1.

If he's a game changer, why isn't he changing games? I like Sibley but it's always "he will do this if......"

Maybe he will turn out to be amazing, but until he does start doing any of the above you mention, it's just potential that will go unfulfilled. At the moment he's a good squad player but has no more reason to demand a place than anyone else.  

I based it on being at the Accy Stanley game were he was arguably our man of the match despite Osulas clinical finishing. He looked sharp after PW showed a bit of faith in him by playing him in his preferred position. He continually left Accies 'average' League 1 players in his lurch. 

You raise a fair point as to why he doesn't always get a run in the team. I'll be honest I don't have a definitive answer to that. I just hope PW continues his faith in him and he repays that faith by fulfilling his obvious talent. 

I think a lot of why LS hasn't fulfillied that talent is he struggles how to channel that raw aggressive side of his game. If PW can nuture that side of his game then he is 100% gonna be a cornerstone in how we move forward as team. It does feel very much like it's now or never for him. Hopefully he grasps the opportunity with both hands. I'm backing him to do it.

[FindernRam]

Assuming he plays from the start tomorrow it will be interesting to see how the crowd react to him and how he reacts to the crowd. If 25000 get behind him early, it could be a massive boost for the lad. Or a total washout.

Personally, I've always thought him a bit overrated but not as bad as some make out. 

[OoooMarkWright]

Sibley was brilliant under Cocu. He burst into the scene better than Micah Richards ever could! 
Since then Rooney ruined his confidence and he hasn’t looked the same, he’s had glimpses but little consistency. 

I actually disagree with some posters. I feel Sibley plays better when he’s on the edge, when he’s aggressive, a menace. He’s a shadow of that player at times. It’s been coached out of him. Yes, it’s important to be disciplined, but Sibley almost needs that aggression to be at his peak. Players like David Speedie, Dickov, Rooney they played their best on the edge. Sibley seems to have focussed so much on his discipline that he’s lost that edge. It’s like he plays within himself. I want the Sibley back that is a menace, that went toe to toe with McTominay. He can still be a key man this year. He’s one of our best attacking threats. Play him central and release the Sibley fury. If he gets sent off and misses 3 matches so be it, it’s better than 10 games of Louis playing within himself. 

[Steve How Hard?]

8 minutes ago, enachops said:

Sibley was brilliant under Cocu. He burst into the scene better than Micah Richards ever could! 
Since then Rooney ruined his confidence and he hasn’t looked the same, he’s had glimpses but little consistency. 

I actually disagree with some posters. I feel Sibley plays better when he’s on the edge, when he’s aggressive, a menace. He’s a shadow of that player at times. It’s been coached out of him. Yes, it’s important to be disciplined, but Sibley almost needs that aggression to be at his peak. Players like David Speedie, Dickov, Rooney they played their best on the edge. Sibley seems to have focussed so much on his discipline that he’s lost that edge. It’s like he plays within himself. I want the Sibley back that is a menace, that went toe to toe with McTominay. He can still be a key man this year. He’s one of our best attacking threats. Play him central and release the Sibley fury. If he gets sent off and misses 3 matches so be it, it’s better than 10 games of Louis playing within himself. 

Great post. I agree wholeheartedly with all of that. I too loved how he stood up to Mctominay trying to bully him. It was a masterclass in how he needs to channel that aggression. He left Mctominay looking like a frustrated cry baby. 

I think PW sees that aggression as a vital attribute to how he wants us to press other teams. Hopefully PWs much hyped man  management can coax the best out of Louie. 

[minesahartington]

Too bothered about his hair to be consistent 

[TuffLuff]

He’s ‘half a yard off’ all the time is Sibley. Nearly in the right position to get a shot off, nearly there with the tackle, nearly there with a pass. He needs match fitness and match sharpness to improve on those things, nothing more. I do think he has a lot of the correct attributes, including his temperament, but it’s nothing without the experience of playing professional football matches. 

The bigger concern for me is Bird to be honest which no one seems to really talk about. Again has a lot of good attributes, but has a lot more match experience and game time under his belt than Sibley but still can play like a kid to me, or to really control the game whilst he’s now into his third season as a regular starter.